Re: February 19, 2010: Wally Boag

Would be interested to know if the recorded show spoken about in the article is the one that was on the 'A Musical History of Disneyland' compilation that came out in 2005. It is 31 1/2 minutes long . If anyone knows you'll save me a couple bucks. Thanks!

Re: February 19, 2010: Wally Boag

That was a very nice article. I don't know for certain, but I think the man standing next to Walt in the first collage with the dark-rimmed glasses is not Wally Boag, but Burt Renner, Wally's understudy. I only suggest this because I was childhood friends with his granddaughter. My friend's mom (Burt's daughter) had tons of pictures of him around their house, including a colored sketch drawn by someone from Disney for when he retired. He was clad in his Pecos Bill costume, was drawn with a long nose and wearing his trademark dark-rimmed glasses.
Burt performed Wally's part in the Golden Horseshoe whenever Wally didn't. I remember my friend's mom had a small picture of Wally and his wife in their hallway. She told me that Wally's wife didn't want to move to Florida in the 70s, so their family moved and her dad became the official Pecos Bill at the Diamond Horseshoe in WDW.
I'm not sure if I ever met Burt. If I did, I was very young (like 6). Wally's career has been amazing, but I do think that picture is of his fellow actor (and my friend's grandpa)!

Re: February 19, 2010: Wally Boag

Originally Posted by NASAMan

Would be interested to know if the recorded show spoken about in the article is the one that was on the 'A Musical History of Disneyland' compilation that came out in 2005. It is 31 1/2 minutes long . If anyone knows you'll save me a couple bucks. Thanks!

The individual tracks on the MP3 download also add up to 31 1/2 minutes.

I had forgotten that the CD set includes The Golden Horseshoe Revue. I launched Disc 3, with its 31-1/2-minute Golden Horseshoe Revue track.

Yes, it's the same recorded show, complete with the Strawhatters and the Mellomen, neither of which were part of the regular 5-times-daily show. (Presumably, they were included to add an extra 7 minutes to the show, to bring it up to LP record length.)

I'll have to update the article to let readers know that if they own the CD set, 50th Anniversary: A Musical History of Disneyland, they already own this recording. So there's no reason to buy the MP3 version from Amazon.

Re: February 19, 2010: Wally Boag

I don't know for certain, but I think the man standing next to Walt in the first collage with the dark-rimmed glasses is not Wally Boag, but Burt Renner, Wally's understudy.

After reading your post, I also wondered if the man next to Walt on the book cover was Wally's substitute, who was named Bert Henry. Bert wore glasses. It seemed odd that Bert might be on the cover of a book about Wally in picture that didn't include Wally.

I took a look at a larger version of the photo inside the book, and it's Wally, not Bert.

Re: February 19, 2010: Wally Boag

To me it seems a real shame that this book is not available at Disneyland. It could be offered next door to the Golden Horseshoe just as the Billies CD is. Or a store on Main Street. I remember the show well, back from the beginning and Wally Boag is a real treasure. I just read on his Facebook Fan Page (his son posted) this morning that he is now in a convalescent hospital in Santa Monica for the foreseeable future.

Re: February 19, 2010: Wally Boag

Originally Posted by Wendygirl

To me it seems a real shame that this book is not available at Disneyland.

I'm surprised that it's not sold at the Disneyana shop on Main Street, which sells Disney collectables and books. Far more people would be aware of the book, have a chance to leaf though it, and buy it on the spot.

The book is published by Disney Editions, yet Disney doesn't sell it.

Also, I called Compass Books at the Disneyland Resort's Downtown Disney. That store has good selection of books for Disney fans. As it was explained to me, they can't sell the book, just as they can't sell Disney park exclusive books from Disney Editions. That makes no sense, considering that the book is not sold in the park.

Re: February 19, 2010: Wally Boag

Thanks for the article Werner!

I'd still love to see the Golden Horseshoe Revue in Yesterland, but I know you've said you don't have enough pictures to make such an article. Would it be alright if I made a post on MiceChat requesting pictures of the Revue, the Disneyland Gallery, or Circarama for the use of your website?

Re: February 19, 2010: Wally Boag

Originally Posted by MarkTwain

I'd still love to see the Golden Horseshoe Revue in Yesterland, but I know you've said you don't have enough pictures to make such an article. Would it be alright if I made a post on MiceChat requesting pictures of the Revue, the Disneyland Gallery, or Circarama for the use of your website?

Yes, I would welcome your efforts to ask other MiceChat participants if they have photos of the Golden Horseshoe Revue. The Golden Horseshoe Revue is the most glaring omission from Yesterland.

I also hope to add Circarama, Circlevision 360, Mineral Hall, the 20,000 Leagues walk-through, Babes in Toyland, the Flight Circle, the Viewliner, anything else from the early decades of Tomorrowland, and, for that matter, anything else that would be a good addition to Yesterland.

One of my plans for this year is to set up a way for Yesterland readers to submit photos. Unless I can figure out how to set up a form-based system, I'll probably write a web page with what I need (and what I don't want), along with a dedicated e-mail address.

What I want is essentially anything that would improve the Yesterland website, primarily amateur photos of "yester" rides, shows, parades, shops, restaurants, and other landmarks from any Disney theme park worldwide, the Disneyland Hotel, and possibly also from other Southern California theme parks and attractions. These could be pictures of things that are missing from Yesterland, such as the Golden Horseshoe Revue. Or they could could be additional photos to improve existing articles (such as more photos of the Stage Coach or the World According to Goofy parade).

I don't want images harvested from other websites, scanned images from books, and other images where sender is not in position to grant permission to me. There are some exceptions, such as publicity materials or when it's easy to make a case that it's "fair use" under copyright law.

Another issue is the quality of the scan. It's often hard to get good results when old color prints are scanned on a home scanner. I've received pictures in which you can't tell where a building ends and the sky begins, where all colors are terribly wrong, or where all details are lost in deep shadows or excessive sunlight. Color slides and negatives can provide excellent results, especially when scanned professionally or on good equipment.

I don't pay for photos, but, if someone makes arrangements with me in advance, I will reimburse reasonable costs for professional scanning.

My e-mail address is [email protected] — IMPORTANT: Because this address gets close to a thousand spam e-mails per day, I have rather ruthless spam filtering rules. But anything with "Yesterland" on the subject line will get through to me.

Re: February 19, 2010: Wally Boag

I got to see the Golden Horseshoe Revue, but never Wally Boag (at least not in my conscious memory). I'm honestly not sure if it was because I was a little kid or that it was truly a monumental show (I guess I'll never know for sure), but that show had a HUGE effect on me. I always got scared when the curtains would fly open and someone was shooting through them. But I absolutely LOVED the teeth spitting scene. I remember I used to think they were popcorn or something and I couldn't figure out why he had it in his mouth.

When the Jamboree replaced it I was sad, but it was also a great show so I wasn't too unhappy. It was only when the Hillbillies took over that I really started to become angry about how they've treated that venue. Don't get me wrong, the Hillbillies are indeed a great act and deserve to be at Disneyland, BUT, they should be outside as streetmosphere instead of occupying that stage. That show was every bit as amazing as the Tahitian Terrace... man, Disneyland had some GREAT restaurant shows back then!

Re: February 19, 2010: Wally Boag

I only saw the revue as a filmed version, which played as a short with a re-released Disney movie back in the seventies (back when they re-released stuff periodically in theatres, as a full package complete with cartoon, short and feature, instead of moving DVDs in and out of the "vault") which I saw as a kid.
Don't know if it was the "extended" TV version mentioned in the article, as I don't remember Annette Funicello or Ed Wynne; it may even have been an edited version, as it had to run as a short before a feature film. The parts I remember the most are the tooth-spitting and the dummies that would fly out on zip-line type things when punched.
Never saw it live, as our family's priorities tended to focus on rides and those shows featuring stuff like animatronics, as my parents considered those things more "special" and specific to Disneyland. Also, my mom was cool at best toward anything western-themed.

Re: February 19, 2010: Wally Boag

I can't recommend this book highly enough. It is incredible. Wally's life covers the whole history of the entertainment industry - being involved in vaudeville, film, TV,... Also includes a major Who's Who of other famous people that he ran into, performed with, and gave advice to - and humble about it. What a great man.
My dad always went on about him, but we mostly went to private party nights when I was growing up, and performances were only during the day time.
I bought a few copies of this book (all signed), for myself, my dad, and one as a gift for later on to be determined.

Eddie: You mean to tell me you could have taken your hand out of those cuffs at any time?
Roger: Not at any time. Only when it's funny.